Risdon Vale boil water alert has been lifted

Risdon Vale boil water alert has been lifted

TasWater advises that the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has lifted the Temporary Boil Water Alert for Risdon Vale.

Updated Thursday 2 November, 5.00pm:

From TasWater

TasWater advises that the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has lifted the Temporary Boil Water Alert for Risdon Vale.

Test results indicate the water being supplied to TasWater customers meets the standards of both the Tasmanian Drinking Water Quality Guidelines (TDWQG) and the Australian Drinking Water Guidelines (ADWG). This means Risdon Vale residents are able to consume water from their household taps without having to boil it first.

TasWater will continue to provide ongoing monitoring and testing to demonstrate water quality meets the drinking water guidelines.

TasWater appreciates the cooperation of the Risdon Vale community and although the boil water alert was short-lived, stress that our priority is to protect the health of the community.

Residents are currently being alerted to the lifting of the need to boil their drinking water with TasWater staff delivering notices door to door.

If you have any other questions or concerns please contact TasWater on 13 6992 or visit our website at www.taswater.com.au.

TasWater thanks Risdon Vale residents for their patience.

Updated Wednesday 1 November, 4.30pm:

From TasWater

As TasWater continues to investigate the source of E. coli identified in a routine water sample of the Risdon Vale water supply, new laboratory tests have so far shown no repeat of any irregularities in water.

“While the latest results are encouraging, further results will be needed before the Department of Health and Human Services can again give the Risdon Vale system the all clear,” said TasWater’s Lance Stapleton, Manager of System Performance and Productivity.

“We have cleaned out the Risdon Vale Reservoir with a diver carrying out a full inspection, but there were no irregularities in the infrastructure that may have led to the E.coli outcome.”

The bulk of the water supplied to Risdon Vale originates from the Bryn Estyn water treatment plant which has been operating normally and tests from Risdon Brook Dam, which occasionally supplements the Risdon Vale supply, likewise continues to meet Australian Drinking Water Guidelines.

“On that basis we suspect the contamination is likely to be very localised and may even be the result of some back flow from last weekend when fire trucks were refilling from a fire hydrant close to the testing site which returned the E.coli reading.

“We can’t however clearly identify the cause yet, but for now we are focussing on fully checking our system and facilities to ensure the health of the public is protected.”

TasWater has carried out widespread flushing of the mains in Risdon Vale aimed at clearing any potential problem water from the system.

“We particularly want to thank the Risdon Vale community for their friendliness to our staff who contacted all residents in a late evening door-knock last night. We are grateful for the patient way they received the news.

“TasWater in conjunction with the DHHS is working hard to keep the inconvenience to a minimum.”

TasWater urges Risdon Vale residents to continue to boil their drinking water until further notice and all the precautions can be found on our website. www.taswater.com.au

Updated Wednesday 1 November, 9.00am:

TasWater is currently working to resolve water quality issues detected during routine sampling of the water supply.

The area affected is identified in the map below with the boil water alert put in place following consultation with the Department of Health and Human Services.

The sample containing evidence of E. coli was just one of several tests taken from a range of locations across Risdon Vale, all the others returning results consistent with the water meeting Australian Drinking Water Guidelines.

Follow-up testing is being carried out with conclusive results taking 48 hours to fully analyse.

A localised boil water alert has been put in place with impacted customers being notified that all water used for drinking and food preparation needs to be boiled.

Information on the boil water alert is available on the TasWater website at www.taswater.com.au or call 13 69 92.